WELLVILLE Cheatsheet

Watch WELLVILLE at 80bites.com/wellville

1. The Metric Shift
In 1985, U.S. health agencies replaced the HAMWI height-weight-gender formula with the BMI, supposedly for easier calculation but really just to relax the standards. Of course, this change impacted classification thresholds: a 5’6” woman previously considered obese at 160 pounds could size up to 186 under the BMI “grading on a curb” formula.

2. The 2025 Reassessment
Four decades later, 75 major U.S. health organizations unite to expose the permissive BMI which was good for commerce but bad for bodies. Now with waist circumference as the measure, obesity prevalence rises to 70% —rather than the commonly cited 40%.

3. The Rebrand Cycle
Commercial weight-loss diets began with the launch of Weight Watchers in 1963. Over time, PC paranoia around weight reframed the conversation away from “dieting” toward “nutrition” and then Wellness!! And Healthy! which means you can eat as much as you want as often as you please if the foods are on the approved list: load up your plate with VEGGIES.

4. The Applicability Gap
The beloved directive to “eat healthy and exercise more” is for metabolically stable individuals with a waistline less than 35 inches. For the 70%, the fix is a few simple steps to reduce quantity. Definitely NOT complex “science” based food manipulations and strength training (lugging around daily 50+ pounds is enough).